We assure you that we have made every effort to find the answers to the questions truckers want to ask. We cannot guarantee that the DOT or State Police didn’t provide us with false/incorrect information. Whenever possible we have double, triple, and even quadruple checked the information. Much of the information has also been checked through personal experience.

PrePass does not maintain a record of your over weight status. They are aware that some states are more lenient than others on over weight and do not include weigh-in-motion information or over weight tickets in their ranking. The only violations that play a role in your company’s PrePass ranking are out-of-service orders for logbook or safety violations. The PrePass system is based on the federal SAFER system.

That’s a tough one. Because we are talking about the government, there is no telling what is going on behind the scenes. Our information is that the government only tracks safety violations and out of service orders. We have checked with the highest rankings at the FMCSA SAFER System and found that they only track these types of violations- over weight violations are not on the list. However, log books and vehicle violations ARE on the list.

That’s another tough one. Our information is that only extreme overweight situations would ever result in an over weight ticket going onto your driving record- and even then, we cannot say for sure that it will show up. Idaho is the only state we have found where an overweight violation is a criminal act- and that is for over gross violations of 4,000 lbs or more. All of our information is that an overweight violation of any type is a civil offense and not a moving violation or criminal offense, and will not affect your driving record.

Dodging the scales means going around the scales using alternate routing. In most states, there is no violation for dodging so long as you are on legal truck routes, running at legal weights and traveling with all the required permits.

Blowing by the scales means that the weigh station is open but you choose to ignore the directions to enter the scale. It means that instead of stopping, you just keep on trucking. This is not such an obvious offense with the rising usage of PrePass and other pre-clearance systems. Keep in mind, if you receive the red light from PrePass and choose to keep rolling, the scale is aware that your truck received the instructions to enter the scale. Blowing by the scales is a violation in all states.

Scale location information is constantly updated. Every time our research trucks pass a scale, the information is added or confirmed. Keep in mind, we are truckers first and experts second. If you find any of our information has errors or typos, we would love to hear about it- please contact us using the contact us link or leave a comment on the scale page.

What if I have a question about a weigh station, state or DOT that isn’t answered on your site?

Feel free to contact us with any questions you have and we will do our best to get the correct answers. Remember, just because you hear it on the cb doesn’t mean it’s true. We’re not afraid to go to the source to find out.

Why should I pay you for information I can already get from my trucker’s atlas?

We don’t ask you to pay for the same information that is in the trucker’s atlas. The information on scale locations, mile markers, and nearby parking is all free information.

But the trucker’s atlas is not always right. There are 187 scales in our database that are marked incorrectly on the trucker’s atlas- meaning they are either marked in the wrong location (which can be a problem if you are trying to dodge the scale), not marked at all (which means an actual weigh station or check station is not even marked on the atlas), or marked on the atlas but not there (meaning, the atlas says there is a scale but in reality, there isn’t one).

The trucker’s atlas provides a lot of information. We provide the information it leaves out.

We provide information on enforcement policies and overweight tolerances. We provide information on what overweight tickets cost and what the repercussions are. We provide many weigh station phone numbers and alternate routes. We provide general scale hours as well as the exits before and after many weigh stations.

When you sign up for a CoopsAreOpen Premium Membership, your information is handled through Paypal. You’ll need to log in to your Paypal account. First, click “My Account” tab and then click on “Profile.” Next, you’ll click “Update” on the “My Preapproved Payments” line and then click “Driver Networks, LLC.” Lastly, click “Cancel.” If this doesn’t make sense to you, click on “help” and enter the term “how do I cancel my subscription” in the search field. Another option is to call Paypal directly at 1-402-935-2050.

Yes, we can. But, as a result of the overwhelming number of emails we receive each day, it’s in your best interest to manage your subscription yourself by logging into your Paypal account. We do not guarantee that your account will be cancelled if you email us with a request.

As it states several times during the sign up process, when you signed up for a Premium Membership, you signed up for a subscription. This means that you will have monthly recurring charges unless you cancel your subscription. You can cancel your subscription at any time by logging in to your Paypal account; you will have one full month of access to the information you paid for so you can cancel any time, even right after you sign up.

I am driving a bus, straight truck, rental truck or a vehicle with a trailer, do I have to go over the scales too?

That all depends on which state you are traveling through. Some states require only vehicles over a certain weight enter their weigh stations. Others require all commercial vehicles (whether they are semi trucks or minivans) to enter. Many of our state pages carry this information. When in doubt, always enter the weigh station.

CoopsAreOpen.com is a website that provides information to truckers about the state-run weigh stations. We do not own nor do we have any affiliation with any of the weigh stations. We simply gather information as best we can and pass it along.

As explained in the previous question, we don’t own or have any affiliation with any weigh station. If you want to weigh your vehicle, you are looking for a public scale. One option is to look for a CAT scale or Interstate Scale online at www.catscale.com or www.interstatescales.com. You can find a public scale at most truck stops.

Many public scales can provide certified weight tickets. Be sure to ask about this at the fuel desk before weighing your vehicle. For more information, check with your Personal Property Transportation Officer.

How can I make sure the moving company I hired is truthful about how much my household possessions weigh?

You can ask the driver to let you witness when he weighs his truck before loading your possessions and after. You’ll want to locate the nearest public scale (or let the driver inform you where to go). Some moving companies operate private scales at their terminals. If its a reputable company, this should be perfectly acceptable. If you’re really worried, you can ask the driver to get certified scale tickets. If you do demand to be a witness or require certified proof, we suggest you tip the driver well. In most cases, you have nothing to fear; the driver just wants to do his job and get on the road (or go to sleep) without the added hassle.

You’ll want to find a public scale, like a CAT scale, at a truck stop. We suggest that you weigh your entire vehicle – both power unit and trailer – first. Then, drop your trailer (make sure the truck stop doesn’t prohibit dropped trailers) and reweigh your power unit. You can determine the weight of your trailer by subtracting the weight of the power unit from the weight of the entire vehicle. This will not necessarily be a certified weight.